How do you remember stuff?

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I finally managed to get a new job. The old job was killing me mentally and physically leaving me with precious little self confidence. Its going to take awhile to get that back. I'm happy with my new employment and I want to do well there. Its still blue collar, hands on, but it is a definite shift from my original field. At my age (mid 40's) its a big change with a lot of new things to learn. So does anybody have any suggestions for absorbing and retaining large amounts of new information? I just don't retain things as good as I did in my teens and 20's if I'm not doing them on a daily basis. Currently, I listen closely while being trained and then try to copy all I can remember into a notebook on break time so I at least have notes to go back to. Any other tips? I never thought I'd make a career change at this stage in life, but its ultimately for the better.

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Congratulations! I hope your new job turns into the best thing you've done.

Staying curious helps. Ask yourself why they are doing things in a certain way. "Why we do it this way?" They might not even know why..."I don't know, this is how we do things here." That's not helping. Don't ask if they get annoyed with you. What can you do? But in trying to figure out why, you end up remembering more.

Taking a note sounds good. One other thing I might suggest is to look over the note right before you go to bed. It doesn't have to be a thorough study. Just skimming over would do. The rest, your brain will take care of when you sleep. There were a lot of researches into this.

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So does anybody have any suggestions for absorbing and retaining large amounts of new information? I just don't retain things as good as I did in my teens and 20's if I'm not doing them on a daily basis. Currently, I listen closely while being trained and then try to copy all I can remember into a notebook on break time so I at least have notes to go back to. Any other tips?

would they mind if you video'd it?

Carry an old smartphone (preferably one that has slot for a microSD memory card) or pocket camera.

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As someone who constantly trains new people on the job, let me say this: Don't worry too much about getting it all right the first time around, and don't spend too much time on taking notes. Just try to do what has to be done, and repeat, repeat, repeat. You will automatically get better. Every boss or supervisor who deserves that title will know and understand that eveybody needs a little time to get adjusted to a new job, doesn't matter wether you're 20 or 45.

I have noticed over and over again that those who try to take it all in at once regularly fare worse than those who give themselves some time to build up their knowledge. 3 to 6 months to go from "beginner" to "fully operational" seems to be the average for office type jobs, twice that for, in my case, mechanics.

The key, from my perspective, for anybody new to a job is understanding and accepting that you have a lot to learn, not trying to make the job fit your existing skills, which, in your case, I am sure is absolutely not going to be a problem.

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I'd have to ask. They seem pretty secretive of their designs and I had to sign a non-compete before coming onboard. I have snuck a few pics during break here and there, lol. A picture's worth a 1000 words. Its probably well over a dozen complex products, each similar in final concept, but each constructed entirely different. Some cost as much as $8500 so quality has to be high.

One issue is the assembly steps (in Solidworks/print form) are poorly ordered and a missing key info at times that my trainer (who is quite good) shows me the ins and outs of. The problem is remembering all those tricks and steps as I might not return to that particular product in weeks. If the directions were perfect, I could get through things with ease.

3 hours ago, S-PCS said:

I have noticed over and over again that those who try to take it all in at once regularly fare worse than those who give themselves some time to build up their knowledge. 3 to 6 months to go from "beginner" to "fully operational" seems to be the average for office type jobs, twice that for, in my case, mechanics.

They seem understanding of this. However, its still a production environment and I've been beat on to produce numbers most of my life (even in restoration, hurry-up, but make it perfect, lol) so this leads to anxiety on my part. I'm going to have to re-train my mindset if they are true to their word.

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I think in most places, especially where quality is a priority, it's better to be 'the guy that asks a lot of questions because he wants to get it right' rather than 'the guy who makes a lot of mistakes because he never asks how to do it right'. Mistakes cost money to fix, questions don't.

They must know that it's going to take time to get new people up to speed, anything else is unrealistic.

So go easy on yourself, enjoy your new job and let it come naturally.

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Thanks guys. You help and suggestions are greatly appreciated. The stress of absorbing all this knowledge while wanting to do well (plus the added stress of being the family bread winner) still beats how absolutely wretched and gaslighted I felt at the last job.